We're about 3 years into the current Solar Cycle and so far it's been less than stellar (pun intended), that is until now.If the recent flare is any indication, we might see better-than-predicted activity from the sun this cycle.
The CME (Coronal Mass Ejection) should be hitting earth any time over the next 36 hours with beautiful aurora over the polar latitudes. And it may knock activity on the HF bands down to a standstill.
As Sunspot 1158 continues to grow, more Earth-directed flares could erupt and wreak havoc on the bands.
An couple of amazing animations of the flare can be found here and here.
This could very well be the kick-start that sun-watchers have been looking for that shows the activity on the sun is accelerating towards a peak in the activity, predicted to be in May, 2013.
Geomagnetic Field:
From n3kl.org
Here are some sites to bookmark for solar weather:
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